Groom by Arrangement. Rhonda Gibson

hot bath and tonight you can sleep in my room with me.”

      “All right but you didn’t answer my question.”

      One of the ladies blew her nose. Jackson suspected it was Eliza.

      Rebecca laughed. “Which question? You ask them and then speed along until I forget what you asked.”

      Jackson almost chuckled. He was glad he wasn’t the only one who had problems keeping up with Eliza’s train of thought.

      A huff filled the air before Eliza repeated her question. “Did Millie know what started the fire?”

      “No, but since both the sheriff and Seth are out of town, Reverend Griffin did a little snooping around and found a half-smoked cigar behind your house. The men are speculating that some of the local boys might have snuck back there for a smoke. And Mr. Walker confirmed that several of the nasty things were missing from a new shipment he’d gotten in his last order.”

      Eliza asked the question Jackson was thinking. “If there was only one cigar behind my house, why do they think a group of boys were smoking back there? I mean, that doesn’t make sense, does it? No, I would think they would have found more cigars. Maybe it was just one boy, sneaking a smoke.”

      Rebecca added, “Maybe the other boys took theirs with them. Anyway, Seth will figure it out when he gets home.” Rebecca’s voice took on a motherly tone as she soothed. “Come on now, drink your tea and I’ll go out to the barn and check on your Mr. Hart.”

      “He’s not mine.”

      Rebecca giggled. “If you say so.”

      Jackson pushed away from the wall and headed toward the front of the house. He didn’t want the women to know he was eavesdropping on their conversation. Now that he thought about it, it really wasn’t a nice thing to do.

      After delivering Eliza’s bag and assuring Rebecca that the animals were settled in, Jackson walked to the smithy. Rebecca Billings had called him Eliza’s Mr. Hart. He shook his head. Women said the strangest things, but he couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to be married to Eliza and be her Mr. Hart. He pushed the thought away. She seemed like a sweet woman, but he didn’t delude himself into thinking she’d ever care about him. And why should she? He wasn’t loveable and didn’t deserve her care. He didn’t enjoy his feelings of protection where Eliza was concerned. Would he become too attached to her if he stayed here?

      Jackson pushed the worrisome thought away and focused on the small town as he walked. New trees had been planted along Main Street in front of the newspaper office and the doctor’s office. Several of the stores had flowerpots sitting in front of them with fresh green shoots coming up. Soon there would be colorful flowers in them.

      The wind blew from the opposite end of town, bringing with it the scent of sawdust from the sawmill and the burnt odor of Eliza’s shop. How was Eliza going to refinance her store?

      He didn’t have far to go to find the smithy. Dan’s home was right behind the druggist. The livery sat beside that, and the smithy was across the street from the livery. He took a deep breath and entered the smithy. The smell of heated metal filled his nostrils. Comfort eased over his taunt shoulders. His eyes began adjusting to the dimmer light. This felt like home.

      Home. Jackson’s thoughts returned to Eliza and the fact that she didn’t have a home or the money to restart her business or build a new house. Upon reflection, he realized that he’d come into town and gotten a job and roof over his head in a matter of hours. She’d come into town and realized within minutes that she was homeless and without a job. It didn’t seem quite fair.

      He released the air in his lungs and silently prayed. Lord, please rebuild Eliza’s life. And, Father, if I am to be part of her restoration, help me to do and say the right things. Amen.

      The thought entered his mind: What if God asked him to do more for Eliza than he wanted?

      Chapter Five

      Eliza looked about the spacious sitting room. She held her bag tightly in her hands, aware that all her belongings were in the bag.

      “Please sit, Eliza. I made a pot of tea. I remember how much you enjoy tea.” Sally Tucker indicated a rocking chair across from where she sat on the sofa.

      After sitting, Eliza placed her bag beside the chair at her feet. “Thank you,” she muttered, wishing she could be anywhere else.

      Rebecca had promised this would be easy—that Sally was a friend—but it wasn’t easy. Taking charity from others was never easy. Now Eliza understood why some women shunned her help when she offered them new dresses to replace their worn-out ones. It had been shame at needing such things.

      She looked up to find Sally’s pale blue eyes full of compassion. Sally wore a yellow day dress with black ribbons around the top and skirt. A row of black buttons lined the front of her blouse; her rounded tummy caused the buttons to gather slightly. Eliza had the urge to tell her that she could let the ribbon out slightly to give her baby more room to grow.

      Sally handed her a cup of tea. “Help yourself to cream and sugar,” she offered.

      “It’s fine, thank you.” Eliza took a sip of the tea. She felt awkward and little beads of perspiration formed on the back of her neck.

      Sally added both sugar and cream to her cup. “Dan and I appreciate you taking care of the house for us, Eliza. I was so unhappy to leave it, but now, knowing you are here puts my fears to rest.”

      Did Sally really think she was helping them and not the other way around? Or was she just being kind? Eliza swallowed. “It is I who should be thanking you.”

      “Nonsense.” She smiled at Eliza. “It’s nice to have friends who can help each other out. You’ve been there for us several times. Remember when Dan burned his leg? You made him a brace to help keep his pant legs from touching the raw flesh. And then there was the time I needed to bake a cake for the church social and I was short on cash that week, you stepped right in and gave me a cake to take.”

      Eliza opened her mouth to speak, but Sally held up a hand to silence her. “There were other times, too, but I think I’ve made my point. You are a good friend, Eliza. We all feel lucky to have you. So please don’t feel uncomfortable about using our home while we are gone.”

      “You really feel that way?” Eliza wanted to believe that she was being a help and not a charity case.

      Sally nodded. “Of course.”

      Eliza felt a smile pull at her lips. “I’m glad.”

      “Didn’t you arrive with a wagonload of supplies?” Sally asked, setting her cup back down on the table.

      Reminded of the material, threads and other notations, Eliza nodded. “Yes, but I’m not sure what I’m going to do with them now,” she confessed.

      Sally scooted forward on the sofa, and her eyes sparkled. “I have an idea.”

      Eliza tilted her head sideways and studied the other woman. “Oh?”

      “This room is the main sitting room. There is a smaller one in the back of the house that Dan and I use when not entertaining. I was thinking that you might be able to turn this one into a small shop. It wouldn’t be as fine as the one you had, but I think it would make a nice storefront, if you wanted to use it as such.” She looked down at her stomach and spread the material over it.

      Eliza looked about the room. It would be nice. A large window faced the road, and she could have a sign made to hang in it, announcing she had hats and dresses for sale. She began to envision how to display her goods. Her gaze moved back to Sally. “Are you sure you and Dan wouldn’t mind?”

      The young woman’s face broke out into a wide grin. “We’d love it. Last night I thought of it, and he said if you agreed, he’d have Mr. Hart help him move the furniture from this room to one of the back bedrooms. We’ve already moved the stuff